Something From The Heart
by Awesome Rapidash
Summary: This is my secret Santa present for Shimmerleaf! It's a sweet Mary x Gary one shot! I hope you enjoy it and Merry Christmas!


_**A/N:**_ This is my secret Santa present for _**Shimmerleaf**_**!** It's a sweet Mary x Gary one shot! I hope you enjoy it and Merry Christmas!

_**Disclaimer: **_I own nothing of or any part of Harvest Moon, it belongs in whole to Natsume. I do promise to clean off and put everyone back when I'm done!

_**Something from the Heart**_

A light snow fall accented the quickening darkness surrounding Mineral Town. For most of the small town's residents the day was finally over and as they headed home thoughts of dinner and relaxing with their loved ones filled their heads.

But not everyone was so lucky. Trent remained on call at the clinic, waving to his young auburn haired nurse as she headed out to join her Grandmother and younger brother for dinner. Jeff was also burning the midnight oil in the supermarket, hoping to make some sense of the shop's inventory. One resident however, was working overtime in spite of an intense desire to get as far away from his employer as he could.

It had been a stifling and difficult day for Gray; his grandfather Saibara had relentlessly forced the young apprentice blacksmith to work through his lunch in order to finish upgrading a tool that his Grandfather had promised would be completed. Gray sighed and looked up from the small piece of gold sitting in the middle of his cluttered and well worn wooden workbench. Looking over at the calendar, he silently cursed his busy schedule. The lack of free time had prevented him from working on the project presently before him.

He was about to resume the precise shaping of the small pieces of metal when the sound of the shop's door opening and closing caught his attention. A moment later his Grandfather appeared, an annoyed expression on his aged face. "What are you still doing here boy?" he asked sounding quite annoyed. "I ain't paying you any overtime for whatever it is you are working on."

Gray took a deep breath as he tried to suppress the anger boiling up inside him. "Don't worry Gramps; the project I'm working on is for me."

"It's for you, what could you possibly need?" With that the elder Blacksmith pushed his way past his Grandson and looked at the bits of gold and silver strewn about the workbench. "What the hell is that mess supposed to be boy?"

Gray could feel his cheeks flush from a combination of anger and embarrassment. "It's going to be a gift when it's done," he muttered in reply.

Saibara couldn't help but laugh. Did his inept Grandson think that anyone would want something he made? Let alone to receive it as a gift! "That mess is a gift you say, for whom? "

"It's a birthday gift for Mary," he growled back angrily. "Now can you leave me alone? Her birthday is tomorrow and I still have to finish it!"

Saibara shook his head. "You ain't gonna work on that here boy; I wanna close the shop for the night… unless." The gray haired Blacksmith paused for a moment and stroked his scruffy beard. "I'll make you a deal, I'll let you work here tonight but only IF I don't have to pay you any overtime next week."

Gray's eyes widened in shock as his brain processed the offer. "What… no way! If I accept that then you will work me into the ground."

"That's the offer boy. If you don't like it then finish that little present of yours somewhere else."

Gray sighed, he knew that his Grandfather had him between a rock and a hard place since he needed access to his tools and the forge to complete Mary's present. "All right, you have a deal," he grunted, knowing that the upcoming week was going to be nothing short of pure hell.

A smile filled Saibara's face. "Good, make sure you lock up when you leave. If you forget and anything is stolen, you'll pay double for it!" With that the elder Blacksmith moved to the door and left. Gray took a couple of deep cleansing breaths and returned his focus to the bits of glimmering metal on his workbench. Knowing that he would likely need all night to compete the present he set about the task at hand.

It was sometime in the early morning hours when Gray finally emerged from the blacksmiths shop. He looked up at the bright moonlit night sky and smiled. It had taken longer than planned and he'd burned two of his fingers using the forge, but in his left hand he carried a small black box decorated with a red ribbon. As he trudged wearily towards the Inn, he hoped that Mary would like the present.

_**XOXOXOX**_

The following morning seemed to come only moments after Gray had crawled under the covers. A groan escaped his lips as he pushed the blanket back and swung his legs over the side of the bed.

The young apprentice blacksmith slowly rose from the bed, and allowed a small smile to form on his face. Today was the day that he had worked so hard for. And he was certain that the raven haired librarian had been looking forward to it as well.

He reached for the box that he'd left on the dresser next to his bed the night before. He hesitated slightly, knowing that he didn't really have as much time as he would have liked to have had to work on Mary's present. Except for last night his Grandfather had kept him hopping. He was pretty sure that it didn't look that great. But even so, all he could do was hope that Mary would like it.

Steeling his courage, he picked up the black box and made his way down to the stairs so that he could have breakfast.

_**XOXOXOX**_

Mary smiled to herself as she returned books to their proper places on the shelves. She was really happy and she knew the reason why this was the case. Her parents had already wished her a happy birthday and given her a cute dolphin plushie as a gift. But there was one person that she couldn't wait to see. A small blush crept into her cheeks when she thought about him. She quickly shook her head and tried to calm herself down. Looking at the clock on the far wall of her library, she hoped that a certain apprentice blacksmith would arrive soon.

She didn't have to wait long before Gray's face appeared in the window by the door. He stood there for a moment, as though checking himself. Then he reached out to open the door and walked inside, holding one hand behind his back.

When the librarian heard the door open, she turned and smiled. "H… Hello, Gray!" she greeted in a cheerful tone.

"Hello Mary," Gray replied, his cheeks blushing in a deep crimson hue.

Mary quickly noticed that one of Gray's hands was hidden behind his back. A curious look reflected in her eyes behind her glasses. She slowly took a few steps closer to her male friend. "Why are you hiding your hand behind your back, Gray? What do you have?"

"Oh, this…" he said with an audible gasp. He pulled the small ribbon clad black box and held it out to her. "Today is your birthday right? Well, I brought you a present!"

"You… you brought a present f… for me?" Mary asked as she happily accepted the box. "Thank you Gray! That was very thoughtful of you. I wonder what it could be." She carefully started to remove the ribbon and lifted the cover on the box.

"It's not very good," Gray admitted softly. "I'll understand if you don't want to wear it."

Mary opened the box and her eyes widened in surprise and she gently lifted the necklace out of the box, it had a silver chain with what looked like a gold colored book attached to the end of it. Tears formed at the corners of her eyes as she looked up to the young man. "Did you… did you make this just for me?

"Yeah, I did," Gray admitted, shuffling his feet nervously. "I really wanted to make it better. But my Gramps was already on my case and I didn't have the time." He sighed quietly. "Like I said, if you don't want to wear it, I'll understand."

The young woman lifted her glasses and carefully wiped away her tears. She looked up and gave the young man standing before her a wide smile. "Gray, it means a lot to me that you would take the time to make something like this for me. I think that it makes it something very special."

"R… really?" Gray gasped in surprise. "Do… do you really like it?"

Mary's cheeks flushed crimson as she nodded her head. "Yes, I do. I… I love it! Thank you so much Gray!"

"You're welcome!" Gray smiled happily as he sighed in relief.

"Could you… help me put this on?" Mary asked as she held out the necklace.

Gray nodded and blushed as he took the necklace from the girl's outstretched hands. He felt the soft skin of Mary's neck as he gently placed it around her neck. It was then he felt her lips gently touch his cheek as she kissed him in gratitude.

"I'm glad you like it, Happy Birthday Mary!" Gray leaned in and softly kissed her forehead.

"Thank you so much for the thoughtful and beautiful gift Gray! Thank you so much!"

As the young man pulled away, he sighed softly. "I wish that I could stay longer, but Gramps wants me back at the shop to finish some work. Can I come back later and take you to the Inn for a special birthday dinner?

"I'd like that a lot," Mary answered with a smile. "Thank you, Gray."

Gray returned the young woman's smile. "Alright, I'll be back to pick you up at six sharp! Good bye Mary!"

"Good bye Gray, see you soon!" Mary waved as she watched the man leave the library. The smile never left her face as she reached down to touch the necklace that Gray had made for her.

Today was a birthday she knew that she would never forget.


End file.
